lifeless. Despite her exhaustion, she couldn't shake the unsettling feeling that clung to her. At some point in the early morning, Wendy woke up for the umpteenth time,

she had never had a chance to study one first hand. Selena reluctantly shared that watching the sunrise and doing her exercises helped her appreciate the beauty of the world and resist the pull of the shadow magic. However, she didn't like to talk about it. Wendy accepted Selena's reason as genuine and promised to observe her behavior. About an hour later, the wagon was on the road again, and Wendy sat in the front wagon while Grey took the middle one. Wendy couldn't bear to face Grey, and her cheeks flushed with embarrassment at the thought of it. As Grey climbed up onto the seat next to Wendy, she struggled to hide her beet-red cheeks. The driver shuffled over amicably. 'Wendy, it's silly to try and avoid me, and there's no reason for it anyway,' Grey said, looking grumpy. 'I-I'm not,' she said stiffly, tilting her head back and looking down her nose at him. 'I can't imagine where you got that idea!' Grey snorted and shook his head. 'You've used magic next to me before, so I know you can do it, Wendy. It's normal to panic your first time, and no one thinks less of you for it.' Wendy looked away and said nothing. 'Besides, I wanted to discuss magic with you, and I know how you like telling people how to do things.' Wendy's head snapped back around, and she glared at him. Indignantly, she cried, 'Well, why shouldn't I help when I have a better way?! It's not my fault I know so much more than everyone else!' Grey laughed, and slowly Wendy couldn't help but let out a little embarrassed chuckle. 'Did you want my help with inscribing?' she asked politely, smoothing down her skirt. He shook his head. 'I'm surprised at how much magic you could draw.' 'I am an exceptionally skilled sorceress. Do you draw your magic from the world?' she asked carefully. She had not, in fact, checked how much raw energy he possessed in him